US Market Updates
Broder indexes in the United States were trading in green on the last trading day of this week, with the S&P 500 index was trading 13.85 points or 0.47% higher at 2,940.02, Dow Jones Industrial Average Index added 79.08 points or 0.30% and quoting at 26,541.16 and the technology benchmark index Nasdaq Composite was trading higher at 8,146.40 and up by 27.72 pts or 0.34% against its previous day close, at the time of writing.
The United States' gross domestic product expanded at a faster-than-expected first-quarter growth rate of 3.2 per cent; economists had predicted a growth rate of 2 per cent. The interest rates declined after the numbers were reported. Growth was supported by increased spending by state and local government, an increase in exports, among other factors.
European Market Updates
Shares in the European market closed in the red: the FTSE 100 index ended lower by 5.94 points or 0.08 per cent to 7,428.19, while the STOXX 600 was up by 0.86 points or 0.22 per cent to 391.01. The FTSE 250 index closed at 19,856.87, reflecting a decrease of 14.18 points or 0.07 per cent. The FTSE All-Share index declined by 2.90 points or 0.07 per cent to 4,072.73 at the end of the day.
British finance minister Philip Hammond described China's Belt and Road Initiative as a "vision", indicating an attempt to forge closer ties with Beijing. With the aim of securing a Brexit compromise before the European Parliament elections, talks with the main opposition Labour Party lingered on. Jeremy Corbyn faced fresh rage from his party MPs after there was no mention of a second Brexit referendum in the European Union election.
London Stock Exchange
The top-performing stocks were COMPUTACENTER PLC (CCC), STAGECOACH GROUP PLC (SGC), and CARPETRIGHT PLC (CPR) which surged by 18.27 per cent, 9.61 per cent and 9.29 per cent respectively. The top laggardsâ stocks were FERREXPO PLC (FXPO), HASTINGS GROUP HOLDINGS PLC (HSTG) and ALLIED MINDS PLC (ALM) which decreased by 28.37 per cent, 12.79 per cent and 6.40 per cent respectively.
Large-cap equity index FTSE 100
5-day Daily Price Chart (as on April 26, 2019). (Source: Thomson Reuters)
Top performers were WPP PLC (WPP), SMURFIT KAPPA GROUP PLC (SKG) and HARGREAVES LANSDOWN PLC (HL) which climbed by 5.41 per cent, 2.70 per cent and 2.29 per cent respectively. The top laggards were JUST EAT PLC (JE), ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND PLC (RBS) and GLENCORE PLC (GLEN), which declined by 4.57 per cent, 4 per cent and 3.30 per cent respectively. The top volume leaders were VODAFONE GROUP PLC (VOD), Lloyd Banking Group Plc (LLOY) and Glencore Plc (GLEN).
On sector specific front, the top three performers of the FTSE 100 index were Telecommunications Services, Consumer Non-Cyclicals and Utilities. Energy, Technology and Healthcare sectors were the top three fallers of the FTSE 100 index.
Exchange Rates*
- GBP/USD was hovering at 1.2923.
- EUR/GBP was hovering at 0.8629.
Bond Yields*
- US 10Y Treasury Bond yield was trading at 2.502 per cent.
- UK 10Y Bond yield was trading at 1.141 per cent.
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*At the time of writing
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